WORCESTER – Senior Ian Converse (Woodstock, CT) handed in a double-double of 14 points and 12 rebounds and sophomore Jamani Spencer (Closter, NJ) came off the bench to add 14 of his own in a 59-55 men's basketball victory over Salve Regina in the opening game of the second annual Ted Coghlin Memorial Tournament Friday night in Harrington Auditorium. It was Converse's fifth career double-double.

The Engineers improve to 2-0 for the 14th consecutive season while the Seahawks, who fell to Division I Bryant on Tuesday, move to 0-2.

Salve Regina held an early and late lead in the opening frame while WPI was in front for 17:26. The Engineers used a 17-8 run to distance themselves by nine (19-10) following a jumper by Converse eight minutes in. Senior Nicholas Bates (Danvers, MA) cut the deficit to seven before Spencer canned a pair of freebies less than a minute later. The momentum then shifted to the guests as they capitalized on a 15-5 rally to take the 27-26 lead into the cloakroom. Senior Sean Doncaster (Medford, MA) looked to give the Engineers a two-point lead; however, his 3-point buzzer-beater attempt caromed off the rim.

 WPI opened the second half with a 10-0 run, highlighted by back-to-back triples by junior Connor Willgress (Mill Creek, WA) and Spencer. Bates interrupted with a traditional three-point play at 16:23. Junior Dave Zielinski (Shelton, CT) gave WPI the 44-12 lead at 11:50 with his second three of the frame. Down 53-41 with 2:23 to play, Salve Regina mounted a rally to pull within a pair as :12 displayed on the scoreboard. Junior Rodney Morton (Malden, MA) topped off the spurt with a trey and was awarded a foul shot which would have made it a one-point game. The Engineers were aided by a 6 for 6 effort at the line to stay in front.

Doncaster finished with 10 points to go with four assists and three steals by Spencer.

Bates poured in a game-best 21 points, totaled 11 rebounds and three helpers while Morton contributed 17 points for the guests.

The Engineers went 12 for 14 at the charity stripe and held advantages in points off turnovers (24-11), second chance points (15-10), fast break points (4-0) and bench points (22-15. The Seahawks had the 26-22 edge in the paint.

WPI plays Bates or DeSales (PA) in the title game tomorrow at 3pm. The consolation game is slated for 1pm.

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Lococo, DeSales Outlast Bates in Ted Coghlin Memorial Tournament Overtime Thriller

WORCESTER – Led by senior Joseph Lococo (Easton, PA), DeSales defeated Bates, 71-70, in overtime Friday in the second annual Ted Coghlin Memorial Tournament at WPI's Harrington Auditorium.

Lococo kept the Bulldogs ahead late in regulation and accounted for six of the team's eight points in the extra session en route to a game-best 21 points. Senior Kuity Slanger (Upper Darby, PA) posted a double-double of 11 points and 10 rebounds, to go with four assists, while senior Brian Laird (Harrisburg, PA) also pitched in with 11 points and added three steals.

The Bobcats were paced by senior Malcolm Delpeche (Wilmington, DE) with 16 points, and three blocks, as classmate Marcus Delpeche (Wilmington, DE) posted 15. Senior Jerome Darling (Hartford, CT) put up 10 and sophomore Max Hummel (Glastonbury, CT) came off the bench to score 13.

Hummel and Malcolm Delpeche each countered Lococo in OT as junior Shawn Strickland (Middletown, CT) hit a three to make it a one-point game with eight seconds left. Marcus Delpeche forced the extra session with a triple with 1.3 seconds left.

The first five-plus minutes featured all seven lead changes. DeSales went ahead for good with 14:29 left in the half. From there, the Bulldogs steadily pulled away and had as much as a 14 point margin with just over a minute until the break. A pair of layups by Malcolm Delpeche then helped the squad get within nine heading into the intermission. Slanger and Marcus Delpeche reached double-digit scoring with 11 and 10, respectively, in the first 20 minutes.

Bates inched closer and took a brief 56-55 lead behind a 3-pointer by Hummel with 7:40 remaining. DeSales regained the lead following a pair of free throws by Lococo 19 seconds later. The Bobcats went up 60-59 with 1:34 displayed on the scoreboard. Lococo delivered again in the form of a jumper at 1:05.

While most of the team statistics were pretty close, the Bulldogs had the better of the bench points (26-17) and second chance points (17-11).

DeSales (2-0) will face host WPI in the 3pm championship game while Bates (0-1) and Salve Regina will meet in the 1pm consolation contest.